Pat Lam admitted that he tested the mental strength of his side at half-time during their straightforward Guinness Pro12 victory over Treviso on Saturday.
Connacht were leading 28-3 at half-time and were all-but assured of their victory, crusing against their Italian opponenets and already notching the required four-tries needed to secure an additional bonus-point.
Yet the Westerners head coach was already thinking ahead to next weekend’s Champions Cup clash away at Wasps and challenged his side to keep their foot on the pedal for the second period at the Sportsground.
“I challenged the boys at half-time,” said Lam, speaking to RTE Sport’s Michael Corcoran after the game in Galway. “We were presented with the opportunity to see if we were mentally tough enough to step it up...and ultimately, we managed to keep the foot on, which is what I asked for at half-time, so I’m pleased with that.”
Lam believes that next Sunday’s clash at the Ricoh Stadium in the first of their back-to-back encounters against fellow group favourites Wasps may prove one of the games of the week as both sides will try to play attractive attacking rugby.
“You look at Wasps, they’re flying it. They’re a quality team and they’re at home. That one o’clock kick-off next Sunday is the ticket to get, I’d say. Two teams that play good rugby, have a good attitude to the game, and on a nice surface.
“It’s an exciting week. That’s why we did all the work last year, to play this sort of rugby and be on the big stage. So we’ve got to get back and have a really good week and go there with a lot of confidence
“I asked them to make my selection difficult next week and they’ve done that.”
